The Boeing 787 Dreamliner sat quietly in Qantas' hangar. It's being hailed by Boeing as the next generation of aircraft technology.

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

In the photo above is Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce at the lectern, and seated in the centre is Boeing 787 chief project engineer Mike Sinnett, with Jetstar Group CEO Bruce Buchanan to the right.

Joyce said the Boeing 787 Dreamliner is the "game changer — the aircraft that is going to change aviation, like the 707 did".

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

The 787's fuselage and wings have been made lighter, as 50 per cent of it is made of carbon fibre and other composite materials. Its fuel efficiency is 20 per cent better than other similar-bodied aircraft.

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

Boeing's Sinnett said, "the aeroplane is largely carbon fibre in its construction ... it's more than 50 per cent by weight advanced carbon-fibre material; the entire fuselage, all of the wings, horizontal and vertical tail, is all made of carbon-fibre material."

In this photo, you can see the Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 aircraft engine.

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

Jetstar told us that the 787 will replace the airline's A330s, which are currently being used to operate its international fleet.

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

Boeing commemorated its test pilots' names near the nose of the aircraft.

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

The Dreamliner also incorporates the latest aviation technologies, including an on-board health-monitoring system, which lets the aircraft monitor itself, and automatically send maintenance reports to ground-based computer systems.

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

Captain Mike Bryan (right), whose name was written on the outside of the plane, was at hand to show off the cockpit and help take photos.

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

Here is the flight deck and controls, which has dual electronic flight bags — a paperless flight manual that provides information on real-time weather and navigation data, among other things.

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

As this was a test aircraft, there were no seats or even walls. Jetstar has said that it is currently working on the plane's configuration and the in-flight entertainment technology. The aircraft will have 330-plus seats, with a two-class configuration: business and economy.

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

Hanging from the ceiling were the Australian and American flags. It seemed as though all that people were really interested in doing was getting onto the flight deck, which is what everyone is queuing up for in this photo.

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

Boeing's Sinnett said that this is the "first commercial aeroplane to be built without a high-pressure pneumatic system, rather than take bleed air from the engine to power many systems on the aeroplane — we do this electrically. This aeroplane can generate 1.5 megawatts of electrical power, and yet while it does that it extracts less energy from the engines than a conventional configuration, and allows us to reduce fuel burn even further."

In this photo, you can see the large overhead bins, which pivot down at the touch of a button, and three large tanks of water for ballast.

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

The nose of the Dreamliner and a little hatch in the roof.

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

Sinnett said that the carbon material has made the wings stiffer and more aerodynamic, and, because carbon fibre doesn't corrode or fatigue, the fuselage can be pressurised to higher levels, and can carry more pressure, oxygen and humidity to make passengers feel better.

"The 30 per cent maintenance-cost improvement, and 20 per cent fuel-burn improvement, wouldn't mean anything if passengers didn't also enjoy flying in the plane," said Sinnett.

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

The tail end of the 787.

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

Jetstar's CEO said that the aircraft will not only deliver comfort and efficiency to its customers, but will also deliver the lowest fares on the market.

"As a global innovator, we are very pleased to be saying we will be the first low-cost carrier in the world to be introducing the 787 Dreamliner," said Jetstar CEO Bruce Buchanan. "In terms of efficiency, which helps us deliver lower fares, in terms of customer comfort and also in terms of environmental impact, which is becoming more and more important in the community."

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

Qantas also showed off its reconfigured 737.

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

The aircraft's cockpit.

Published: November 16, 2011 -- 04:36 GMT (20:36 PST)

Caption by: Irene Mickaiel

(Credit: CBSi)

The 737 now has Sky Interior installed, which is an LED mood-lighting system.